The Duke's Secret Cinderella

Eva Devon

Feb 2023 · Never a Wallflower Book 3 · Sold by Entangled: Amara

About this ebook

Charlotte Browne could just kick herself. What on earth possessed her to tell the Duke of Rockford that she is a lady? But something about the duke’s handsomeness and kind intelligence makes Charlotte blurt out the teeniest, tiniest falsehood. Now it’s too late to admit she’s just plain Charlotte of no particular importance—with cinder-stained hands, a wretched stepfather, and no prospects for marriage...

Rafe Dorchester, Duke of Rockford, has done what every self-respecting duke must do—avoid marriage at all costs. But the only thing stronger than the duke is his mother. When she lays down the highest ultimatum, he’ll need to find a duchess. Immediately. Only, when he calls on a potential bride, he instead finds the pert, fresh-faced Lady Charlotte. Rafe was warned to never mix the business of marriage with pleasure, but when it comes to her...oh, business would be a splendid pleasure.

One passionate, illicit kiss sends Charlotte fleeing, leaving only a delicate blue ribbon behind. For Rafe can never discover her secret, or it will ruin her beloved sister’s chance at marriage. But the duke knows that when you’ve found the one person that ignites you, body and soul, nothing can keep you away.

Each book in the Never a Wallflower series is STANDALONE:
* The Spinster and the Rake
* Much Ado About Dukes
* The Duke's Secret Cinderella

Ratings and reviews

Sweet romance with sizzling chemistry! Rafe is being gently blackmailed by his well-meaning mother to finally settle down and take a wife. Charlotte is the poor relation, destined to be a charity case who should be thankful she's being allowed to work as a maid in her stepfather's household. In a series of scenes that are inspired by my favorite Cinderella film, Drew Barrymore's Ever After, Charlotte and Rafe find that their connection is far deeper than either of them could have expected. In Charlotte, Rafe finds a woman with the same values, the same outlook on life, as he has. I really felt Charlotte's struggle as she both recognized her true soulmate and yet also knew there was no chance they could ever be together. A maid never dares to aspire to become a duchess, yet all of her protestations are ignored as Rafe is determined to convince her she's the only one for him. These are charming, fascinating characters who I instantly cared about. The secondary romance was a nice surprise, as was the strong friendship between Charlotte and Francesca. It's not until late in the book that we finally see all the secrets revealed in a way that I never saw coming. This put a whole new spin on the entire romance, and as surprise twists go it was brilliantly constructed and executed. I was completely consumed by this book from the first page until the very last, and I can't recommend it highly enough. It's one of the very best I've read in historical romances. I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.

I thought this was a very fun read. This twist on the Cinderella fairy tale worked for me, and I enjoyed reading it. Rafe and Charlotte had great chemistry and they were easy to root for. If you're looking for a cute read, that's going to give you some very nice feels, this one will do it. This is my freely posted frank review.

Sent by his mother, Rafe approaches a potential bride only to fall for her half-sister Charlotte. Little does he know that Charlotte is treated as little more than a servant in her own home by her greedy, conniving stepfather. What happens when the truth comes to light? This is an emotional fairytale retelling with well-drawn characters and lots of twists. I enjoyed the audiobook narration as well. Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

About the author

USA Today bestseller Eva Devon was raised on literary fiction, but quite accidentally and thankfully, she was introduced to romance one Christmas by Johanna Lindsey's Mallory novella The Present and a romance addict was born. Now, she loves to write her own roguish dukes, alpha males, and the heroines who tame them.